Quartz

Both amethyst and citrine are routinely heated. Amethyst is heated to lighten the color if the rough is too saturated. Brown quartz (smokey) is usually heated to produce the golden-yellow of citrine.

ORIGIN

The largest amethyst deposits are in Brazil, but there are significant deposits in Zambia and Uruguay. The Brazilian material is famous for its purple red flashes whereas the Zambian amethyst displays more of a purple blue flash. Most of the world’s citrine is mined in Brazil.

FOLKLORE

Quartz comes in many colors including pink (rose quartz), purple (amethyst), yellow (citrine) and clear (rock crystal). Amethyst and citrine are the most popular forms of quartz.

The name amethyst is derived from the Greek word for “not drunken” since it was worn as an amulet against drunkenness. Citrine gets its name from its golden- yellow color. For many years the Brazilians called any yellow stone “topaz”. Real topaz is more valuable than citrine so it is unacceptable to interchange these terms.

CARE

Since both citrine and amethyst are heated to produce the desired colors, further heating could damage the ideal original color. All quartz can be steamed or cleaned in the ultrasonic.